Prestigious award carries Luke icon’s name

  • Published
  • By Stephen Delgado
  • Thunderbolt staff writer
LUKE AIR FORCE BASE, Ariz. --  Last year was a great and memorable year for the 56th Logistics Readiness Squadron Fuels Management Flight as they captured the coveted Roy A. Bateman award, which signifies the best fuels flight in the Air Education and Training Command.

Winning this award is uniquely special because its namesake spent almost a half century at Luke Air Force Base. In his years at Luke, Roy A. Bateman pumped enough fuel to light a medium-sized city for a few weeks.

His illustrious career at Luke began March 5, 1956, when he filled a temporary three-month slot as a munitions worker earning $1.50 an hour. His incredible work ethic would in short time earn him a permanent slot as an aircraft fueling vehicle operator specialist, which would begin his distinguished career in fuels.

Bateman fueled a plethora of different aircraft during his 47-year career to include the T-33A, F-84, F-86, F-100, F-104, F-4, F-5, A-7, F-15 and the F-16, in addition to many different types of transient aircraft.

During his nearly half century at Luke, he watched the base grow from a small training facility to one of the foremost training wings in the world. He dispensed more that 125 million gallons of aviation fuel to more than 104,000 aircraft. Bateman's hard work was a profound element in the successful training of American and foreign pilots. His years at Luke covered the conflicts in Vietnam, Operation Desert Shield/Storm, Bosnia and Operation Iraqi Freedom.

When the United States was attacked Sept.11, 2001, Bateman personally refueled the NORAD alert aircraft, which aided in helping to secure the country during this tense time.
His nearly five decades of hard work and effort helped the Luke fuels management team earn numerous awards such as the best fuels flight in the Air Force in 1984 and 1990, best supply operation in the Air Force in 1995 and myriad command-level awards. Bateman was personally recognized as the Air Force wage grade fuel civilian of the year in 1995 and 2002.

This Air Force legend's life began Jan. 23, 1922, in Loogootee, a small town in southwestern Indiana. He entered the Army in August 1942. After completing basic training, he was assigned to 91st Reconnaissance Platoon, a scouting unit for Gen. George Patton's 11th Army. He drove numerous types of vehicles during the war and was discharged Jan. 13, 1946.

He returned to Indiana where he married his childhood sweetheart, Patricia. Bateman attended projectionist school and worked as a theater projectionist for six years. He and Patricia had three children.

All good things must come to an end. Bateman fueled his last aircraft May 9, 2003, -- an F-16D Fighting Falcon -- at the age of 81. He passed away five months later on Oct. 9.
A hallway in the Air Force Fuel Training Complex at Sheppard Air Force Base, Texas, was dedicated to Bateman Nov. 5, 2004.

Editor's note: The information on Bateman came from a 2009 article published by the National Petroleum Management Association.